The Live Well Blueprint – Part 1 -  Down-shift Stress

Stress is a vital part of our lives. Once upon a time it would have potentially kept us alive; imagine back in our hunter gatherer days, out in the wild and suddenly faced with the threat of being eaten by an animal higher up the food chain, our fight or flight response would have kicked in and we would have either decided to fight or run, based on split second reactions.

This type of stress is designed to be functional and short term, to keep you alive when under immediate threat. What happens to our body when this happens? -faster heart rate, quicker breathing, constricted blood vessels, release of extra glucose into the blood stream from the liver and temporary shutdown of non- essential bodily functions such as digestion and sexual reproduction. Short term stress, the body can deal with and is vital to function well in certain ways.  

Imagine though if we were constantly putting our bodies under stress, that definitely has an impact on us; physically our blood pressure increases which over a long period of time can raise our cardiovascular risk, constant release of glucose will increase our chances of type 2 diabetes, increased stomach acid can cause heartburn and digestive issues, weakened immune system, tense muscles leads to increased back pain, headaches, as well as increased anxiety and poor sleep, all of this can add to a plethora of related health conditions.

OK, so that’s the heavy stuff... Now, how can we counteract the above by thinking about and implementing the “Power of Nine” into our daily lives?

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Movement - Exercise or daily living tasks to give you the release you need.

Exercise such as walking, jogging, swimming or rowing can lower stress hormones such as cortisol, whilst releasing endorphins that improve mood and act as a natural painkiller for your body. They can be done outside in nature, they have a repetitiveness in action that allows the brain focus on surrounding and concentrate on the movement required. These types of activity will improve physical function.  Tai Chi, Yoga and Pilates all offer a type of activity that includes body, mind and breathing function, which will allow cortisol levels to lower and supports the system that allows the relaxation response the opposite of fight or flight response, lowered blood pressure and heart rate.  Daily living tasks such as gardening, housework, and walking the dog can all impact on lowering our stress levels, getting fully involved and lost in a daily activity can lower the levels of stress hormone released.  

Purpose – Having a structure, routine and a plan.

This is key at the moment with all the change and uncertainty. If we can develop a routine that is easily adaptable, but still manages to enable us to fulfil and achieve on a daily basis, it can help us to cope better. Having a to do list for each day with pre-decided tasks means that we will not experience the stress of smaller decisions each day, what I call mini stress moments. We don’t notice them so much but if we have a dozen mini stress events in a day these all add to our stress levels, so take care to notice these small stresses and try to reduce them with forward planning, it will be good for your long term health.  

Family & Tribe - spend time with the right people.

Connection with others be it friends or family, people you like, releases a chemical called oxytocin which is a natural stress reliever. Even when we cannot connect with these people in a physical space we can still use digital means to connect. “Tend and befriend” is the opposite of “fight or flight”; Women can be seen as more natural at achieving this type of connection, but it is equally important for men to have these connections too. Place emphasis on spending time with others and be fully engaged.  If you don’t particularly have close networks volunteering can offer a positive connective outcome too.

Other factors to consider are:

Laughter – is a stress reliever, what tickles your funny bones can in turn help relieve stress and act as a muscle relaxant.  

Do nothing – give yourself permission to just lay on your bed and watch the clouds float past, listen to your own breath. Put down the technology there is so much now in our world it stops us from free thinking and quite mind time.

Music- Whether it’s your favourite tune to dance to in the kitchen to or some relaxing sound to just sit and close your eyes, both have benefits.

Caffeine - know your tolerance levels we are all different when it comes to this too much can affect our stress levels and sleep quality.  For me one cup of filter coffee gives me the shakes and a headache, for others they could cope with four easily.  

Alcohol & Smoking – both used for “de-stressing moments” but are they? The behaviour around the habit could be, sitting down having a drink, taking yourself outside and away for a cigarette.  In reality they both add to physical stress on the body, so whilst the time out behaviour is positive the action of smoking and drinking is negative.  Find new ways of achieving that time out.  Maybe a cup of tea and a walk around the garden will achieve that few minutes out for you.

Finally, be present in all that you do, watch a young child playing and you will understand what I mean, how absorbed they are in a task; the world around them disappears temporarily.  How many of you are doing jigsaws again for the first time in years?, realise how time just goes by whilst doing this type of activity.  Hobbies revived or new, this is a time to take a look and give them a go.

Focus on what makes you happy, memories of good times and experiences, plan to do more of these in future, memories you want to create either for yourself or with others, make a list or keep a gratitude journal.  At the end of the day no one remembers how many great cars you owned or how fabulous your house was, and the amount of stress you went through to get these material things.  They remember the great cake you baked them or the fab weekend you spent together, sitting on a beach laughing your heads off at a silly story, all great stress relievers.  

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